IRC standards ‘not mandatory’ for building flyovers, claims BBMP

Wednesday, 06 December 2017 06:18
administrator

The Hindu 06.12.2017

IRC standards ‘not mandatory’ for building flyovers, claims BBMP

It justifies 4.5 m vertical clearance for the proposed steel flyover

The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) on Tuesday claimed
before the High Court of Karnataka that Indian Road Congress (IRC)
standards were not mandatory for construction of flyovers and the
standards specified could be altered depending upon local requirement.

BBMP’s
counsel made this submission before a Division Bench comprising acting
Chief Justice H.G. Ramesh and Justice P.S. Dinesh Kumar during the
hearing on a public interest litigation petition challenging the
legality of construction of a steel flyover at Shivananda Circle in the
city for various factors, including for not complying to the IRC
standards.

Justifying the 4.5 m vertical clearance below the
proposed flyover at the Shivananda junction, it was contended on behalf
of the BBMP that a minimum vertical clearance of 5.5 m as per the IRC
standards cannot be provided as the existing railway underpass nearby
does not permit increasing the length of the flyover to provide 5.5 m
vertical clearance and the corresponding gradient.

Meanwhile,
counsel for the petitioner claimed that construction of a flyover at
Shivananda Circle has no logic when the IRC standards cannot be applied
keeping in mind the safety of road users, and cited a report, given by
an expert on road engineering to the petitioners, in support of this
claim.

However, counsel for the BBMP claimed that the flyover
would not cause any hardship to road users or motorists, and added that
the design of the flyover had been certified by experts from the Indian
Institute of Science.

The Bench adjourned hearing till Wednesday
while stating that the court was anxious to know whether allowing the
flyover sans IRC standards would be in public interest or not. The court
asked counsel for the BBMP and the petitioner about possibility of
securing a report from an independent expert about the safety aspect of
the present design of the flyover.